Paper-clip



J. E. STARK.

PAPER CL|P..

APPLICATION FILED APR.12| 1920.

1,369,717. 2 Patented Feb. 22, 1921.

UNITED STATES JOHN EDWIN STARK, OF ATLANTA, GEORGIA.

PAPER-CLIP.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Fb, 22, 1921 Applicationfiled-April 12, 1920. Serial No. 378,426.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN EDWIN STARK, a citizen of the UnitedStates,'residing at Atlanta, in the county of Fulton and State ofGeorgia, have invented new and useful Improvements in Paper-Clips, ofwhich the following is a specification. I

The invention relates to a paper clip.

The object of the present invention is to improve the construction of atype of paper clip composed oftwo substantially U-shaped clampingmembers and a connecting band or loop and to provide a simple, practicaland eflicient means for securely maintaining the clip in engagement withpapers when applied to the same and also to construct the clip so thatpapers other than those clamped or held by the clip will be prevlentedfrom accidentally catching in the c 1 I ll further object of theinvention is to provide a paper clip and fastener of this characterwhich will notinjure the papers and which may be easily and quicklyremoved from the'same when desired.

Another object of the invention is t0.pr0- vide a combined paper clipand fastener having means for securely fastening papers together withoutinterfering with'theuse of the device in the mails.

With these and other objects in view the invention consists'in the novelconstruction, combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter fullydescribed, illustrated in the accompanying'drawings and pointed out inthe claims hereto appended, it being under stood that various changes inthe form, proportion and minor details of construction, within the scopeof the claims, may be resorted to without departing fromthe spirit orsacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

In the drawings in which like characters of reference designatecorresponding parts in the several figures:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a paper clip constructed in accordancewith this invention.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the same.

Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional view of the cli Fig. 4 is. a sideelevation showing the cllp applied to a plurality of sheets of paper,the latter being in section; and Fig. 5 is a similar view showing theclip as it appears in use.

In the accompanying drawing in which is clamping member 1 so as'to liewithin or between the sides of the sameforming inner and outer clampingmembers. The paper 4 to be clipped is inserted between the clampingmembers 1 and 2 which are sprung apart in the usual manner for thispurpose and in order to prevent other papers from catching into the clipthe end portion 5 of the outer or wider clamping member is bent inwardlyat an obtuse angle as shown to cause this end of the clip to firmlycontact with or abut against the clipped paper as clearly illustrated inFig. 4 of the drawing whereby sheets or pieces of paper other than thoseclamped by the clip will be prevented from catching under or beneath theend portion 5 of the clip. In practice the inner clamping member liesclose to the clipped paper and with the ordinary clip the outer or widerclamping mem-' I ber is forced to a position at an angle to the adjacentface of the paper with its bentor endportion in slightly spaced relationto the same so that papers will readily catch in the clip and interferewith the use of the several sets of clipped papers in a file or otherplace. By bending the inner terminal portion of the clip inwardly asshown this spacing of the end of the clamping member from the clippedpapers is eliminated and a more secure engagement and clamping action iseffected. It is also preferable to bend the other end of the clip at theloop or connecting bend 3 inwardly at an angle similar to the bentportion 5 of the clamping member 1 as this contributes to the clampingaction and firm engagement of the cli with the paper.

In order to provide a combined clip and fastener the terminal of thewire or other material at the member 1 is bent at an angle to form aspur or projection 6 which extends inwardly when the olip is in use andwhich is sharpened or pointed to enable it to pierce the paper andpositively fasten the clip to the said paper and prevent the clip frombeing accidentally led or slipped ofi the papers to which t e clip isapplied. The spur or projection is preferably of a le h to terminateshort of or substantially at t e outer face of the adjacent side of theclamping member 2 when the clip is applied to the papers so that thespur or projection will lie substantially within the contour of thedevice and not project therefrom and interfere with the use of thedevice in the mails or be liable to scratch or otherwise injure personshandling papers held together by the clip. The spur or projection may,of course, be made of any desired len th as ma be readily understood andit will be scent at by lifting the spur or projection out of contactwith the clipped apers the device may be readily removed mm the same.

The inwardly bent terminal portions of the paper clip not only providefor the abutting of the clip against the paper for preventing otherpapers from catching under the clip, but the inwardly bent terminalsalso form exterior inclined surfaces which are adapted to cause otherapers to slide readily over the clip wit hout catching therein.

The spur or projection while being shown oppositely beveled for piercingthe paper, may be of any desired shape and may either pierce the pa erorengage the surface for holding the c ip in place. a

What is claimed is.

1. A paper clip of substantially oblong shape constructed of resilientmaterial convoluted to form two clamping members and a connecting loopor bend, one of the clampin members being extended beyond the ot er andbent inwardly at an angle to cause it to firml contact with papers.inserted' in the clip su stantially as and for the purpose described.

2. A paper clip of substantially oblong shape constructed of resilientmaterial convoluted to form two clamping members and a connectin loop orbend, said cli having its termina. portions bent inward y at an angle tocause it to firmly contact with and abut against papers inserted in theclip substantially as and for the purpose described.

3. A paper clip comprising two connected resilient clamping members, oneof said members having one end; extended beyond the other member andbent at an angle thereto, whereby papers inserted .in the clip are heldmore securely and extraneous papers are prevented from becoming caught.

4. A paper clip comprising two resilient clamping members having acommon connecting end, said members being of unequal length, the end ofthe longer and the end. common to both being bent in the same directionout of the plane of the central portion of the clip. 1

5. A paper clip of substantially oblong shape constructed of resilientmaterial convoluted to form two clamping members and a connecting bend,one of the clamping members having the terminal portion of the materialbent to form a spur or projection arranged to pierce papers insertedin'the clip, said clip having its terminal portions bent inwardly at anangle to cause the clip to contact firmly with the paper at the innerend for preventing other papers from catching under the clip.

6. A paper clip of substantially oblong shape composed of twosubstantially U- shaped clamping members and a connecting bend, theterminal of one of the clamping members being provided with a projectionextendin inwardly for engaging the paper to hold the clip thereon, andthe ends of the cli being bent inwardly.

n testimony whereof I have hereunto set m hand.

y JOHN EDWIN STARK.

